Foot-corrective appliance



Nov. 9, 1926. 1,606,187

W. M. SCHOLL Foo'r CORRECTIVE APPLIANCE Filed April 2, 1925 PatentedNov. 9, 1926.

maaier WILLIAM 1v1. soHo'LL, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. a

FooT-,oonancfrivn Arr-Linnen.'

'Application vfiled. April 2,

The invention relates .to foot corrective appliances.

One of .the objects of the invention is to provide a yielding, resilientmeans to sup port the outer longitudinal arch of the foot by raising andsupporting the front end of the o s calcis, the cuboid and the posteriorend of the fifth metatarsal bones of the foot near where theyarticulate, to induce outward tilting of the footvin weak inwardlyrolled feet and to relieve the outer plantar muscles of fatigue andundue stress.

Another object fis to provide a yielding heelcushion to receivethe oscalcis and its covering Vand which isvresilient so .as to serve as ashock absorber` where the Vshock is produced by impact of the heel ofthe foot of the walker with an unyielding roadway.

A further object is-tomake the upper surfaces of the heel-receivingcushion inclined P inwardly at an angle to a horizontal plane toencourage the foot to tilt outwardly about the tibia so as to restoreand to maintain it in its natural position. Y

The device is intended to correct the tendency to walk on the outerlongitudinal edge of the foot in which the inner plantar surfaces, orsoles of the feet are raised, as when the legs of the afflicted personare outwardly bowed.

Other objects, advantages and benefits will become apparent to personsskilled in the art, from a` consideration of the following description,when taken in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the device.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section taken on line IL-II of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a transverse section taken on line III-III of Figure l.

Figure 4; is a rear view ofthe devicein elevation.

As shown on the drawings:

The preferred form of the device is shown in plan view in Figure 1, inwhich the reference numeral 5 indicates a resilient triangular plate,made preferably of soft rubber. It is triangular in form having a baseline 6 and a line 7 describing the hypotenuse -and a rear curved leg 8.The device shown is for insertion in a shoe near the heel thereof uponthe right foot on which the shoe is to be worn. The plate 5 tapers foreand aft from the rear portion 9 to the front portion 10, just in therear of the vertical protuberance l1, and it also tapers from the baseline 192,5. serial No. `20,051.`

6 to the hypotenuse 7 as more clearly shown in Figures?, and'.V

To hold the device 5 in vproper position in the shoe I prefer to use aflexible ,plate 12, preferably of leather, tov which the :plate 5 .discemented or otherwise secured. The plate l2 is .skived across its frontedge as at 13. rlhe plate 12 is somewhat larger in outline than theplate 5 leaving amargin 14 between the two and the outside of the rearportion of the shoe heel. I prefer to perforate the plates 5 and 12withregistering spaced erforat'ions 15, the axes of which are pre erably inverticalplanes and 'thereby leaving an imperfforate margin 16 around thegroup of perforations. this is to render the enclosed -perforated lZoneof the plate 5 less resistant to pressure so that the heel portion ofthe foot will make 'a deression more or less into the yielding body ofthe plate 5 and the outer surface of the heel will rest on theimperforate margin which will bear the weight of the wearer imposedthereon. Pressure is not imposed upon the central part of the os calcisof the foot but around the more rigid edge thereof. The plate 5 istapered as described for the purpose of causing the right foot, in thepresent instance, to be tilted outwardly or the angle inwardly toprevent .the wearer from walking upon the outer longitudinal edge of thefoot and shoe.

The yielding protuberance 11 supports the posterior portion of the fifthmetatarsal and tends to support the front end of the os calcis and theintervening cuboid bone of the foot and thus it restores and maintainsthe outer longitudinal arch-forming bones in their proper positions andrelieves the outer plantar muscles of undue strain until the strength ofthe foot has been recuperated and the parts are able to maintain theirnatur-al form and position unassisted. The perforations 15 also serve asmeans for The object of I Ventilating through the inner Zone ofthe usoft rubber plate, and furthermore, they contain air which serves, moreor less, to produce a cushioning effect upon the plantar surface of theheel. The plate. 5 serves as a shock absorber to relieve the foot-of theorder to meet .the deformed conditions as they may beV found.

The protuberance 11 is located at a point Where the base line 6 and theline of the hypotenuse 7 meet and at the front end of the device whichis about the proper location for performing the functions described.

It is manifest that the part 5 may be used alone and properly securedVin the heel of the shoe, but it is best to use the leather plate 12 andsecure the part 5 thereto as this prevents the shifting of the part 5 inthe shoe and produces, to some extent, the elevation of the heel whichis one obj ect of the device, as means for lifting the outerlongitudinal arch.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

1. A cushion device for insertion Within a shoe, comprising a resilientplate generally triangular in plan outline with its base linesubstantially parallel with the outer edge of the heel part of the shoeand its rear out line rounded to conform generally to the innerI rearpart of the shoe heel, said plate being tapered transversely andinwardly from the aforesaid base line toward the hypotenuse of theaforesaid outline, said plate having its central zone perforated atfrequent intervals by spaced openings leaving an imperforate marginaledge and having a protuberance extending vertically near theintersection of said base and said hypotenuse to support the bones ofthe outer longitudinal arch of the foot.

2. A cushion device for insertion Within a shoe comprising a resilientplate of soft rubber, generally triangular in plan outline,

v with its base line substantially parallel with the outer edge of theheel part of the shoe and its rear outline rounded to conform generallyto the inner rear part ofA the shoe heel, said plate being taperedtransversely and inwardly from the aforesaid base line toward. thevhypotenuse of the triangle and forwardly from said rear curved end; anVunderlying plate of relatively rigid material to which the resilientplate is attached, both plates having spaced apertures extendingvertically therethru leaving an imperforate margin near thelbase androunded rear outline of the superposed resilient plate.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name.

WILLIAM M. SCI-IOLL.

